After the success of the girls during the 2007 World Cup, I figured they deserved their own specific thread.

It looks like Sermanni is sticking around.

AUSTRALIAN women's coach Tom Sermanni has knocked back a rich and prestigious job in charge of the US team to remain at the helm of the Matildas for another five years.

The US federation headhunted the 53-year-old Scottish-born coach after the World Cup in China but, after weeks of soul-searching, has opted to stay in Australia. Sermanni, named Asian Coach of the Year in the wake of the Matildas' fairytale run to the World Cup quarter-finals, will now guide them through to the 2012 Olympics.

Sermanni, who coached in the now-defunct US women's professional league with San Jose and New York, was believed to be first choice of the US federation after Greg Ryan was sacked following the World Cup, where the two-time world and Olympic champions finished third.

The Matildas have received further recognition with captain Cheryl Salisbury and youngster Ellyse Perry collecting major awards at the NSW Institute of Sport 2007 Awards held overnight in Sydney.

Matildas skipper Salisbury collected the latest award of her decorated career in winning Team Athlete of the Year award, while at the other end of the scale 16-year-old dual international Perry was named Junior athlete of the Year.

Last week Matildas striker Lisa De Vanna became the first footballer to claim the WA Sportswoman of the Year Award, with team-mate Collette McCallum also nominated.

There was also recognition last night for Australian FIFA Women’s World Cup final referee Tammy Ogston who won the Officiator of the Year Award at the Queensland Sports Federation Awards.

Three Matildas will be heading to the US to further their club careers and a possible contract when the new US Women’s Professional Soccer League starts in 2009, by signing for USL W-League 1st Division side Pali Blues Soccer Club.

Midfielder Collette McCallum, plus forwards Sarah Walsh and Caitlin Munoz are set to play for the Blues this summer in their inaugural season in the USL W-League. The club is based at Pacific Palisades in California.

Blues head coach Charlie Naimo reiterated that excitement.

"I cannot say enough about what this means to our franchise and the league itself,” Naimo stated. “The Australian National Team had a breakout performance in this past summer’s World Cup, and the Blues are honored to have three of their best performers."

"The trio of Collette, Walshy and Caitlin is unique in its on-field diversity,” Naimo continued. “Collette is one of the best playmakers in the world, Caitlin can play underneath the forward line or as a target while Walshy is a very busy and dangerous player that can cause all kinds of problems. She can change a defense with her pace alone."

The women’s A-League is set to kick off this September/October according to sources at last night’s Matildas documentary premiere in Sydney.

It’s said a major sponsor has been found by FFA and the league will kick off just after the men’s A-League and national youth league campaigns begins.
It’s yet to be decided if the women’s teams would be A-League or state-based, however it’s hoped the league will take the women’s game to a new level. That’s something the players hope will happen.

“Everyone I talk to says they’d like to see a women’s A-League game before the men to give that variety to the fans and more value for those who have season tickets,” Matildas midfielder Jo Peters told au.fourfourtwo.com.

“We’re in desperate need of it. It’ll help our development as a football country. We got to the quarter finals without having a national league - imagine how good we could be if the league kicked off.”

Matildas coach Tom Sermanni has named a number of young players including teenage Indigenous striker Kyah Simon in his squad that will meet world number one United States in their two match series later this month.

The 20-strong list also features 15 members of the squad that reached the quarter finals at last year's FIFA Women's World Cup in China.

Australia are yet to defeat the United States in 18 encounters losing 16 of those matches, however there have been two draws in the last three meetings between the two nations.

THE NEXT generation of Matildas will gather in Canberra this week for training matches against New Zealand at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra.
Both the Young Matildas (Australia u-20) and the national Under 17 women's team will face New Zealand u-17 in two training matches each over the coming week.

The squads, coached by Alen Stajcic (u-20) and Gary Phillips (u-17), are in the early stages of preparation for their respective 2010 world youth cup campaigns with Asian qualification matches due to start later this year.

A stunning late rally from the Matildas came to nought when the United States scored in injury time for a 3-2 victory in a rain-soaked women's soccer international in Cary, North Carolina tonight.

The Australians had hit back from 2-0 down with two goals in the final six minutes from Kate Gill and Cheryl Salisbury to level, as they sought their first win over the Americans in 19 meetings.

Carli Lloyd bagged the winner for the home team in the first minute of injury time when she headed home a punched clearance from Australian 'keeper Lydia Williams.

The Matildas were using the friendly international against the reigning Olympic champions to tune up for the Asian Cup in Vietnam from May 28 to June 8, having failed to qualify for the Beijing Olympics.

And the draw for the Asian Cup has been completed, and the Matildas face a tough group stage to qualify for the semi finals.

Australian coach Tom Sermanni remains optimistic about the Matildas' Women's Asian Cup prospects despite admitting his side has been drawn the most challenging group for the 2008 tournament.

Seeded two after their runner-up finish in the 2006 Cup, the Matildas avoided Asian No.1 North Korea, but drew Japan and the top two qualifiers - South Korea and Taiwan - for the May 28-June 8 event.

I think we are placed in the more challenging of the two groups, but we have experience against each of our opponents in recent years so it wont be as daunting as our first Asian Cup appearance," said Sermanni.

Australia will open their campaign against Taiwan on 29 May, followed South Korea on May 31 and then Japan on June 2 - a fixture which could decide top place in the group.

It will be Australia's second appearance in Asia's premier women's football competition after finishing second in Adelaide two years ago - losing to China in the final on penalties.

IT was a case of déjà vu for the Australian women's football team in their second friendly international against the USA early this morning in Birmingham, USA.
A last minute goal by the US, earned the home side a 5-4 victory in a pulsating match in which the Matildas rallied from 4-1 down to almost snatch victory.

Trailing by three goals going into the second half, the Matildas staged a remarkable comeback to level it 4-4 after just 69 minutes. They seemingly had earned a deserved draw with the World No.2, when the US’s Angela Hucles touched home from close range in the 94th minute after a free kick into the box was flicked into her path.

With two minutes of normal time remaining, Matildas midfielder Lauren Colthorpe was a coat of paint away from giving Australia the lead, her strike from distance crashing against the crossbar.

"The players did so well today and I felt we deserved to win," said coach Tom Sermanni.

"At 4-4 I thought we were going to win the match. We had the momentum but the USA is a quality side and they snatched the game right at the end."

"I was proud of the way the girls fought out the match. Once again we fell behind but never gave in."

Coach Tom Sermanni hailed the growing stature of his Matildas team as he announced his squad for the Women’s AFC Asian Cup and an international against Canada in Sydney on Friday 23 May.

In a joint press conference with Socceroos coach Pim Verbeek, the national women's boss said the Matildas were now a respected Australian national team.

“We are part of the landscape now,” Sermanni said.

“It shows that we are accepted and we are absolutely delighted to be given a chance to play on the same night as the Socceroos.”

The Matildas face the Canadians in the early match of a double header involving the Socceroos and Ghana at the Sydney Football Stadium.

The match will be the Matildas’ last trial match before they travel to Vietnam this month for the Women’s AFC Asian Cup.

Australia will be missing several mainstays from that team, with Joanne Peters and Sally Shipard both absent through injury, and Thea Slatyer and Alicia Ferguson unavailable.

The three overseas based players - Heather Garriock (Fortuna Hjorring, Denmark), Kate Gill and Lisa De Vanna (both Linkopings, Sweden) - will not play agaionst Canada and will join the squad in Vietnam.

The Matildas' opponents in the Asian Cup are Chinese Taipei, Korea Republic and Japan.

THE battle between football and cricket for the services of Ellyse Perry is set to intensify after the gifted youngster was named in the Matildas' squad for the Women's Asian Cup in Vietnam.

Matildas coach Tom Sermanni says Football Federation Australia won't be pressuring the Pymble prodigy to choose between the two games.

"We're quite happy that she's playing both sports, and I think the last thing any of us want to do is put her under the kind of pressure where she has to make a decision," Sermanni said yesterday.

"If she has to make a decision, she has to assess how she sees the merits of both games, what games she enjoys playing the most, and what environment she prefers to be in, and I don't know the answer to that."

While Sermanni is adamant Perry can switch between sporting lives as a defender and fast bowler for now, he's equally wary there's a duty of care to make sure she doesn't burn out.

"She can keep playing both because they're largely both still amateur sports for females, and that's probably the key thing - players have jobs and do other things, whereas males are very much full-timers," he said.

"But it's essential for both sports to make sure we don't overload her so that she breaks down with injury or feels under so much pressure that she can't perform."

Coach Tom Sermanni has added three stars of the future to his Matildas squad that will face Canada this Friday as part of a double-header at the Sydney Football Stadium preceding the Qantas Socceroos match against African powerhouse Ghana.

Young Matildas 16-year-old pair Tameka Butt and Ella Mastrantonio, along with 21 year old striker Jenna Tristram will join the squad which convenes in Sydney on Monday. It will be a welcome return to the national team for the Coffs Harbour raised Tristram who has been absent since suffering a serious knee injury a day after making her Matildas debut in her home town in April last year.

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The Matildas squad for the international match v Canada in Sydney on Friday:

Matildas coach Tom Sermanni plans to field an understrength side in tonight's Asian Cup opener against Taiwan with one eye already on Saturday's key clash with South Korea.

The Australian squad has been hit hard by injury and unavailability in the lead-up to the Vietnam tournament, with key duo Sarah Walsh and Joanne Burgess both ruled out.

Tonight's Taiwan match in Ho Chi Minh City is considered the most winnable of Australia's three group matches - Japan is the other team in the group - but, with hot, humid conditions and a short turnaround, Sermanni is treating the fixture warily.

"What we've got to try and do tomorrow is put out a team against Taiwan that we think is going to be good enough to win the game without perhaps putting a full-strength team out," Sermanni said yesterday.

All right Frank Lowy, time for you to do the right thing and sack Sermanni. Failure to qualify for Beijing 2008 combined with a fourth-place finish at the AFC Women's Asian Cup should make the decision so easy even a monkey could do it.